This night, countless people lived a rather restless life.
Regardless of the officials, big or small, all the mansions are brightly lit, and the inspection censor in charge of the curfew is extremely busy. Basically, when he sees a sedan on the street, he has to go up to say hello, and then sends soldiers from the Wucheng Soldiers and Horses Division to escort him back to the house. .
In the end, the soldiers brought out were not enough, so they had to go to Shuntian Mansion overnight to coordinate, and dispatched a bunch of government officials, who made trouble all night long.
In the early morning of the next day, it had been clear for two days, but dark clouds began to gather in the sky again, and little snowflakes fell on the sedan chairs. Originally, in such heavy snow or rainy weather, if there was no important or urgent court affairs, the emperor would give a compassionate decree. Free of charge.
But it is obviously impossible today.
Therefore, the elders could only huddle under the Qianbu Corridor, order people to light up the stove, and sit together in twos and threes, having the final discussion before going to court.
As the sky dimmed, a group of senior officials from the Six-Ministry Procuratorate and Cabinet arrived outside the palace city, and the prelude to this court meeting was about to begin slowly.
"Long live my emperor."
In the Wenhua Hall, the emperor wore a bright red dragon robe and said calmly.
"Flat body."
Immediately, the ministers stood up, and Zhu Jian of the cabinet stepped out and presented his memorial again. Although everyone already knew the content, as a prelude, Mr. Zhu Ge read it again.
"...Your Majesty's love for the prince is known to the world and is shared by all the ministers. However, the East Palace is the reserve of the country and should be cultivated strictly from an early age. Therefore, your majesty should give up your love and order the imperial court to set up a Zhan Shifu. , Youchunfang, to assist the prince, this party is the king of the country and the father of all people..."
The content of the memorial is much the same as yesterday, but the logic is clearer. In this memorial, Mr. Zhu Ge listed several reasons.
First, leaving the cabinet without preparing a government violates the ancestral system and violates etiquette and law.
Secondly, leaving the cabinet without preparing a government will cause the prince to only study the classics and principles, and not understand government affairs, and gradually become a corrupt scholar, or he may not be able to build a scholar.
Third, leaving the cabinet without preparing a government will make people in the world question the emperor's intention to save money, which will hinder the stability of the country.
but……
"Your Majesty, I think this sparseness is unreasonable and far-fetched. It is actually a bad intention."
As Zhu Jian's words fell, voices of opposition immediately arose in the court.
The speaker is not an unknown person, but an official from the official department.
Speaking of Master Yu, he usually has little reputation in the court.
However, he has a dazzling identity, as an official of Prince Xin's Mansion!
It should be said that since Hongwu, under the premise that the court suppressed the vassal kings, being a royal official often meant that the official career had come to an end.
However, fate is so magical.
With the change of Tumu Fortress, the original gloomy official career suddenly turned into a prosperous road.
Prince Tan's Mansion originally had two chief historians, one as a preceptor, one as a companion, a chief judge, two deputy judges, and a middle official, Cheng Jing.
After the emperor ascended the throne, all these people were put into the cabinet department for training.
However, this is also what the ministers admire about the emperor, that is, when employing people, they will never be nepotistic.
When the court was in turmoil, he did not rush to place his own people in important positions, but used them according to their talents.
Two long-time officials from the Imperial Academy, Yi Ming and Yang Zhu, were sent to other places to serve as prefects.
Other supervisors or royal officials who were trained by the government, such as Yang Yu, Yu Gang and others, were placed in the Sixth Department to take charge.
Yu Yan and Zhu Fu had better luck and were sent to the Metropolitan Procuratorate as supervisory censors.
But in short, the official rank is not very high.
After these people got their official positions, they did both good and bad things, but what surprised all the officials was that as the emperor's potential ministers, they did not receive any preferential treatment. In fact, during the official inspection in Beijing, The assessments for these people are very harsh.
For example, Yang Yu, Yu Gang, and Zhu Fu, although their performance is not excellent, they are not bad. If they raise their hands and give an excellent evaluation, there is no problem in promoting them to the first level.
However, in the end, they only received a mediocre evaluation and stayed in their original positions.
Only Yu Yan went to the front line to escort the baggage at the height of Oara's attack. He even personally supported a pass on the way and took the lead in repelling a group of Oara's cavalry, which was a great achievement.
Under this background, he reluctantly passed the evaluation of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and got a middle-to-upper grade evaluation. He was transferred from the supervisory censor to the six subjects, and all his appointments were given to Shizhong.
You know, when Yu Yan was sent to the Metropolitan Procuratorate as censor, the court had objections, because Yu Yan was not from a formal imperial examination, but from a supervisor.
In other words, it is the so-called "turbid current", and officials of the Department of Science and Technology have always been exclusive to clear currents.
However, because of Yu Yan's identity as an old minister of Qiandi, no one said anything in the end. However, as he risked his life on the front line again and again and made military exploits as a civil servant, he was impeached in court again and again. Speaking out, everyone has to admit that this Master Yu has real talent and learning.
Therefore, even the most closed Qingliu circle finally slowly accepted him. Otherwise, it would not be so easy for Yu Yan to secure his position in the matter.
However, Yu Yan definitely has the ability, but his attitude must also be naturally destined.
Therefore, as soon as he opened his mouth, the eyes of everyone in the court were focused on him.
Yu Yan stood in the hall, but without any fear, he spoke.
"There are three things that Mr. Zhuge said. One of them is etiquette. This is a matter of the Ministry of Rites. Yesterday, the great uncle already said that the ceremony of leaving the palace in the East Palace is based on the etiquette and ceremony. There is nothing inflexible. Yu believes that, Regarding matters of etiquette and ceremony, no one can be more convincing than what Grand Uncle Zong said, right?"
After the words fell, there was also movement from the Ministry of Rites.
Mr. Hu didn't sleep today. While the courtiers all had dark circles under their eyes, he was in high spirits.
Holding the wat board in his hand, Hu Hui stepped forward at the right time and reported.
"Your Majesty, after the old minister returned to the ministry yesterday, he reconvened the ministry meeting. Now the detailed protocol for the crown prince's coming out of the cabinet has been taken shape. To prevent any accidents, I have drafted two protocol notes. No matter whether the result of today's court meeting is for His Royal Highness to prepare the palace, , the Ministry of Etiquette can handle it according to the etiquette notes, your Majesty, please take a look at it."
After saying this, Mr. Hu presented a thick memorandum and handed it to the chamberlain who came down the imperial steps. After a while, he placed it on the imperial desk.
Looking at the memorial in front of him, Zhu Qiyu raised his hand and flipped through it, feeling speechless.
This old guy... really knows how to rely on his old age!
At this time, Hu Hui stood up and presented the ritual note, which actually supported Yu Yan's statement.
However, he happened to point out that there were two ritual notes. The meaning of this was that the two could not help each other.
However, this is indeed in line with Hu Hui's character.
He has always kept a low profile in the court. If Li Xian hadn't gone too far in the court yesterday, he wouldn't have been so angry.
However, angry, Hu Hui could not change his position because of Li Xian.
This note was his response to the incident in the East Palace.
Not taking the initiative, not helping, not causing trouble, not being responsible.
Whatever the outcome of the court discussion, the Ministry of Rites will recognize the outcome and implement it faithfully, but will not participate in decision-making.
Sure enough, after handing over the memorial, Mr. Hu bowed and returned to the courtroom as if he had completed his task.
Seeing this situation, the officials had different expressions. Wang Wen looked angry, but Zhu Jian looked happy.
Yu Yan, who was still in the hall, frowned, but he knew in his heart that he could not interfere with the decisions made by ministers of Hu Hui's level.
So, after calming down, Yu Yan continued.
"What Grand Uncle Zong said was heard by all the civil and military officials. There is no difficulty in etiquette when leaving the palace in the East Palace. Therefore, what Zhuge said in the memorial is not in line with etiquette and has no basis to rely on."
Saying this, Yu Yan gradually regained his own momentum and said.
"As for the second part, Mr. Zhu Ge said that not being prepared for official duties will make the prince a rotten scholar. It is even more nonsense. I would like to ask, which family's children began to be exposed to national affairs at the age of three?"
"Even though the prince is the crown prince, he is still just a child. Mr. Zhu Ge only saw the disaster of Jianwen. Did he ever see that at his current age, His Highness is unable to control government affairs?"
"There is one last thing. Yu just wants to ask, His Majesty is saintly and benevolent, and he has devoted himself to the Prince of the East Palace. How did Mr. Zhu Ge see that His Majesty has the intention to save money?"
After saying these words, Yu Yan became more and more powerful.
At the end of his words, he took two steps forward and stood opposite Zhu Jian, saying with a stern look.
"Mr. Zhuge, the emperor has been very kind to you and relied on you for promotion many times. However, as soon as you entered the cabinet, you started a party dispute and stirred up public opinion in the court. Now you ignore the current situation of the East Palace and forcefully prepare the East Palace. What's worse, What is your intention in slandering Your Majesty and insulting the Holy Spirit?"
Facing Yu Yan's questioning, Zhu Jian was very calm.
He knew in his heart that the reasons he had put forward were not sufficient, and Yu Yan's rebuttal was not unreasonable.
However, since he dared to do this, he was not completely unsure.
With a slight smile, Zhu Jian spoke.
"Master Yu, you don't need to give me a big hat. The East Palace is a reserve, and you should be cautious in making arrangements. What's more, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Majesty are uncles and nephews, not father and son. Therefore, there has been a lot of discussion among the people about this. I naturally It is clear that the emperor is a saint and a benevolent person, but the people in the countryside are ignorant and unable to understand the Sacred Heart. It is for this reason that I suggested that your Majesty prepare a palace for His Royal Highness to reveal the Sacred Heart."
"As for whether His Highness the Crown Prince is young and can bear the weight of government affairs, the Emperor was even younger than His Highness the Crown Prince is today when he left the cabinet. Since there are precedents to follow, what's wrong?"
When these words were spoken, a discussion immediately arose among the courtiers.
This Mr. Zhu Ge...
I really dare to say it!
These few words are tantamount to pushing the emperor into a corner, as if the emperor does not agree to prepare a palace for His Royal Highness, then in the eyes of the people, he will become a usurper of the throne of his nephew.
The words sounded high-sounding, but the people listening underneath were frightened.
It is true that such remarks have been made all the time, both in the government and among the people, but no one dares to speak out because no one knows whether the emperor has this intention.
Or in other words, no matter whether the emperor has this intention or not, saying these words will definitely make the emperor unhappy, and no one can predict the consequences.
Sure enough, facing Zhu Jianming's implicit words of praise and disdain, the emperor's face turned cold, but the old man still said nothing.
In contrast, Yu Yan's expression froze below, and he didn't speak for a while.
It's not that he was refuted by Zhu Jian, but that he thought it was ridiculous.
Yes, the Supreme Emperor was indeed given the ceremony of leaving the cabinet at the age of more than two years.
However, who doesn’t know the situation at that time?
At that time, the late emperor had been on the throne for several years, but no prince was born, so he was overjoyed to have a son. In addition, the concubine Sun at that time and now the empress dowager Sun were also his favorite concubines. He couldn't wait, so he canonized the emperor as the prince. The ceremony for leaving the cabinet was held in the year.
But how can these two be the same?
At that time, the emperor's appointment was more of a ceremonial nature.
The ceremony of leaving the palace was done, and the officials prepared it, but in fact, the Supreme Emperor was still raised in the palace, and he was not really educated until he was about five years old.
As a result, many ministers at the time were quite critical of this. They felt that the late emperor had overstepped the rules of etiquette and acted too hastily. The troubled court was not peaceful at all.
Not to mention, given the current situation, the reason why His Highness the Crown Prince wants to leave the cabinet is to educate himself.
If subordinate officials are prepared, then what they learn every day must be included in government affairs. Once involved in government affairs, as the language says, what national affairs can a three-year-old child understand?
Zhu Jian's words were obviously messing around.
Yu Yan was stunned for a moment, and was about to refute, but at this time, another person stood up in the hall and said.
"Your Majesty, I also believe that since the prince has left the cabinet, he will naturally serve as a subordinate official. Even if His Highness does not intervene in government affairs for a while, the court must make preparations in advance to save money."
Lord of Dali Temple, Du Ning!
No one thought that the second third-grade official to speak out would be this person.
You should know that although the Minister of Dali Temple is only slightly stronger than the Six Ministers in terms of official position, Du Ning's status is somewhat special.
He is from Hanlin Qingliu family!
Especially after Gao Gu, Peng Shi, Shang Ren and others were demoted one after another, officials with Hanlin background became increasingly rare in the court.
But even if it is rare, this force still has a high status in the court.
The first is because Hanlin Qingliu was originally the top class among scholars, and the second is because there is another mainstay in the court from the Hanlin lineage.
Minister of Industry, Chen Xun!
As a result, many ministers reacted immediately.
Although Xiao Tan is in charge of the Hanlin Academy today, the imperial court has not held even a single examination since Xiao Tan took office.
Therefore, it stands to reason that in the Hanlin Academy, Xiao Tan actually had no disciples that he personally guided.
And the next examination will be exactly after this year.
As the official reserve of the imperial court, one of the most important functions of the Hanlin Academy is to reserve talents for the East Palace. In other words, if the East Palace can successfully prepare the palace this time, the Qingliu forces of Chen Xun's group will benefit the most.
This opportunity is fleeting.
If the East Palace fails to prepare the palace this time, then it will be postponed to four or five years at the latest.
By that time, the examinations had been held for at least two sessions, and there was an influx of fresh blood into the Hanlin Academy. Under the auspices of Xiao Fan, the new bachelor, there was no telling who would end up with the prestigious position of official in the East Palace. .
Yu Yan was shocked.
He didn't expect that this matter would unknowingly turn into a game between the Qingliu lineage?
Looking up at Zhu Jian, he saw a smile on his face, looking at him calmly, with a hint of pride...
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